'79 308 restoration

Good point Philip, its not too tough to install a compressor after the fact. I dont like the idea of having new lines made, installed and not using them though. The evap unit under the dash is also a heavy item. Ill most likely install the complete system and count it as 1HP loss with the extra 10lbs of the compressor in the off position.

Decampos, my car will look euro but with the US spec/ converter equipped deck lid. The bumpers, lack of side lights, front signal lamps and the lack of smog will be euro as well as the weight reduction. I dont mind the crash bars in the doors on the US spec cars, might save my butt one day. The bumpers together are 80lbs without shocks! So a switch to the fibreglass ones will be about a 78 lb reduction right there. Im hoping for 2800lbs finished without me in it. I wont have a spare tire in it either and with the glass bumper Im running shorter front springs to compensate and keep the nose down.

 

Well, Ive been very busy lately and havent spent much time on the 308. I did get the wiring harness ready to go back in though, recovered a large portion of it as the plastic covering gets brittle and doesnt want to bend so it breaks when you remove it from the car. I removed the hard shell connectors, cleaned everthing, the contacts and made a few repairs as well. Thats behind me now, that was a major PITA, the dash is ready as is the column and so on. The suspension is ready, the rims are done, etc... Im sending out the seats to have the new skins installed. I have to make brake lines up for the new look then turn my attention to the engine detailing. Ill be back in high gear in march and spend my life in the garage until its done, im tired of it being apart it just hasnt been priority lately.

Thanks for asking,

paul.

 

Hi Jay, yeah im up for a run but not in the 308 this summer. Cant wait for the snow to melt so I can go out for a run, I need to join the FCA one of these days, get the calender of events and Ill be ready right from the start. Looking forward to the shows.

P.

 

Sorry Sean, I havent checked out this thread in a couple of weeks. Im having a friend of mine do the seats, just has to take off the old skins and put on the black ones but it looks like there is some stitching involved and hog ring pliers, etc.....Next I have to buy the carpets, some seals and so on. Im looking forward to the warmer weather so I can get my motivation back.

 

Thanks Mike, they are plated gold cad or yellow zinc. Dont know the difference but they are plated not painted just like the hardware but in different colors as they were when new.

 

Yes Helmut, I was going to use clutch cable pulleys rather than the proper window ones because the clutch pulley has a bearing instead of a bushing. Cost might be an issue then I was going to upgrade to a scissor type mechanism like a domestic car and eliminate the stop at the bottom of the door frame allowing the window to actually go all the way down as well as operate quickly. Still not sure what Im going to do there since Im concentrating on the suspension and other things leaving the interior to last. So, here are some current pics of where the car is at now. Im going to install the brake lines, cables, coolant plumbing and so on then detail the engine and gearbox to ready it for installation. The engine and gearbox have only 2 and 1 seasons on them respectively which is very little distance so rebuilding them both again is pointless. Ill do the belts and various other items to keep everything up to date.
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...a few more
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Should this thread now be moved to the 308 section? Just curious.

 

Thanks for the kind words everyone. Im not worried about concours correctness partially because its a 308 not a 250TDF. Also after all the labour involved I wont leave items in bare metal or "natural" so they were painted rather than left to rust. The ball joints, the spindle arms, the hub flanges and many other items are painted to simulate the metal look (not perfectly but not bad either). The uprights are also painted. I will be leaving the block and heads in natural aluminum but the valve covers and timing covers will get paint because they are a different alloy and cast by a different method so the finish isnt as nice, the euro rear valve cover is die cast like all front ones but the US spec rear in 79 was sand cast and looks rough, not easy to get a shine out of. They might go silver, might be crinkle finish, undecided.

 

Ive been on and off the project doing other things but kep the parts coming in so they are there when I need them. The tanks are in, the shifter, cables, heaters, dash, column, etc. Ill post pics of those later. I truned my attention to the engine and gearbox. Since I had rebuilt the engine and gearbox around 5000kms ago I decided to pass on tearing the heads off again. I had put high compression pistons in it at the time and did syncros as well but had to split it all to get the studs out for replating. I removed all of the visible studs but left the valve cover studs in place since they have acorn nuts and running the risk of a stripped hole or broken stud wasnt worth the trouble. I still have to remove the belt drive cover and extract those studs then its all off to the plater. I was shocked at the number of parts in that white bucket, thats a lot of studs and washers. I checked and adjusted the shift forks, retorqued the heads and will double check the mains, replace all seals and so on. The steering rack is also done and I have lengths of hose to make up all the fuel and coolant couplers.
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